Smith and Corbyn, who debated a host of issues in front of a
studio audience on the Victoria Derbyshire Show, were asked
whether the Islamic State, also known as ISIS, ISIL or Daesh,
should be invited to negotiate in any future peace process in
Syria.

Smith, who played a part in the Northern Irish peace process
earlier in his political career, said: "Ultimately all solutions
to these crises do come about through dialogue.

"So eventually if we are to try and solve this, all of the actors
do need to be involved. At the moment, ISIL are clearly not
interested in negotiating… At some point, for us to resolve this,
we will need to get people round the table."

Responding to the same question, the current Labour leader Corbyn
ruled out negotiating with the terrorist group. "They’re not
going to be round the table, no," he told Derbyshire.

Watch the moment Smith says he would be prepared to
negotiate with ISIS.

Ian Dunt (@IanDunt), who is
the editor of Politics.co.uk, tweeted saying "genuinely horrified
by what Smith just said" and moments later followed up with
"there is only one moral solution to dealing with Isis and
that is to destroy them. Anyone who cannot see this is in a very
dark place."

In an email sent to BI, a spokesperson for Smith said:
"Owen is clear that there should be absolutely no negotiation
with Daesh, or any terrorist group, until they renounce violence,
cease all acts of terror and commit themselves to a peaceful
settlement."

They added: "Owen's experience of helping to bring about peace in
Northern Ireland is that eventually all parties who truly believe
in delivering peace have to be around the table. In the Middle
East at the moment that clearly doesn't include — and may never
include — Daesh."

A spokesperson for Corbyn said the comments were "hasty and
ill-considered" and added the terrorist group "cannot
be part of those negotiations. Instead, its sources of funding
and supplies must be cut off."

An unnamed Labour source told the International
Business Times' Ian Silvera: "It shows how lightweight Owen is
that he makes more gaffes than Frank Spencer." Spencer was a
character in British sitcom Some Mothers Do 'Ave
'Em who had a habit of making disastrous remarks.